(The following letter was sent to Town of Oyster Bay Supervisor John Venditto and is printed here with the permission of Mr. Doering.)

I am writing to you in reference to the unanimous decision of the town board, on Dec. 18, 2001, to accept the Hess proposal for the Hamlet of Oyster Bay.

I have done extensive research in the files in the town clerk's office and interviewed many people in Oyster Bay. Most of these people don't understand how the board came to this decision in spite of the fact that the Oyster Bay Civic Association voted overwhelmingly against this proposal, despite the fact that over 1,300 citizens of Oyster Bay signed petitions at stores in the village against this proposal.

Would you consider:

1. That the aesthetics of Oyster Bay (keeping our village historical looking) is a concept you have supported?

2. The fact that the downtown part of Oyster Bay needs more commerce?

3. The fact that high speed "in and out" traffic is a danger to the children from the Boys & Girls Club who will be tempted to cross at a notoriously dangerous intersection?

4. The fact that Hess had similar proposals in both Massapequa and Hicksville with absolutely no opposition from the public?

5. The fact that the people of the Township of Oyster Bay, not the Hess Corp., voted you into office here?

6. The fact that you are always giving speeches about protecting this so-called "Pearl of Oyster Bay Township."

This confuses me no end.

You could have easily told the Hess Corp. that you gave them Massapequa and Hicksville, and that they should leave the Village of Oyster Bay alone. One board member told me, in an interview, that you were afraid of a lawsuit for this particular special-use permit. Your Bonnie Eisler, two years ago, in front of witnesses, speaking of saving the Quentin Roosevelt Post up at Hallocks, said that she could never vote against the Oyster Bay Civic Association's position. However, she voted to accept this particular proposal. This doesn't figure.

I had, as a voting member of the Oyster Bay Civic Association, asked the president, Marie Knight to send you and the board a reminder, in October, that the OBCA had voted against this proposal and that the population had also expressed their concerns. When I researched the Hess proposal file in the town clerk's office, there were letters from citizens most of which opposed this proposal. Strangely, I could not find in the file, a copy of the letter from Marie Knight, president, Oyster Bay Civic Association. I am sending you a copy of this letter dated June 25, to jog your memory.

I don't expect you to get back to me since you have not replied to my previous correspondence. I am just putting you on notice that the citizens of Oyster Bay are getting fed up with this kind of treatment. Do what you will with Massapequa and Hicksville. Please don't compare Oyster Bay with other areas having different needs. People move here to get away from that type of hustle and bustle.

Charlie Doering